Clams and Pork à Alentejana
Serves 3-4
A recipe from the Alentejo region (the Algarve’s interior neighbour). Non-meat eaters can leave out the pork, insread doubling-up on the clams. This is traditionally served with boiled potatoes but is also great with rice or good bread.
Ingredients
- 700g/1lb 8ozs Amandes de Mer clams, well cleaned
- 500g/1lb of pork shoulder cut into cubes
- 100ml/7tbs dry white wine
- 1 heaped tsp smoked sweet paprika (or ordinary paprika)
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 cloves
- 3 cloves of garlic crushed
- 3 tbs extra virgin olive oil
- 2 onions sliced
- 4 tinned tomatoes chopped
- 1 small handful each of chopped coriander & parsley leaves
- 1 lemon cut into wedges
- sea salt and pepper
Method
- In a bowl mix the wine, paprika, bay leaves, the cloves, two of the garlic cloves and 1tbsp of the oil with a pinch of sea salt and several grindings of pepper, then add the pork.
- Leave to marinate for at least 2 hours or longer if possible.
- Drain the meat, reserving the marinade, and pat dry with kitchen towel.
- Heat the remaining oil and brown the meat on all sides then remove from the pan, reserving the oil and set aside.
- Add to the pan the onions, the remaining garlic clove and the tomatoes and cook gently until the onions are soft.
- Put the meat back in together with the reserved marinade and cook gently with the lid on for around 1 hour or until the meat is tender.
- Add the clams and cook on a fairly high heat, stirring occasionally, for around 4 minutes.
- Stir in the coriander and parsley, check the seasoning and serve with the lemon.
